BENTONVILLE, ARK. — Walmart announced May 3 it has launched a line of veterinarian-formulated pet food products under its private label Pure Balance brand. The new products, PRO+, include four formulas for cats and five formulas for dogs.

Pure Balance PRO+ cat food formulas include a dry sensitive skin and stomach diet formulated with turkey; a wet pâté Healthy Weight formula with chicken and fish; a kitten-specific dry food with chicken; and a senior cat food option with chicken.

Dry dog food formulas include a puppy diet with chicken and rice; a senior diet with salmon and brown rice; a large breed formula with chicken and brown rice; a small breed diet with chicken and peas; and a weight management diet with chicken and oatmeal.

These new dog and cat diets include added vitamins and minerals — including DHA, glucosamine and chondroitin, L-Carnitine and antioxidants depending on the formula — and are free from fillers and artificial ingredients, according to Walmart.

All dry dog food products sold in 8-lb bags — which includes the puppy, senior, large breed, small breed and weight management diets — are priced at $9.88 per bag. The small breed dog food is also available in a 16-lb package at $18.08 per bag, and the puppy diet is available in a 16-lb package at $10.86 per bag. There is also a 30-lb option for the large breed PRO+ dog food, priced at $17.34 per bag.

The wet Healthy Weight cat food formula comes in 3-oz cans at $0.78 per can. The dry cat food formulas are sold in 7-lb bags at $11.98 per bag.

“Launching at a price point that is lower than similar premium pet food items, Pure Balance PRO+ is a great value and makes it easy and affordable to make your pet’s nutrition a top priority,” wrote Melody Richard, vice president of pets at Walmart in a corporate blog post.

According to Chicago-based market research firm IRI, the average price per unit for dry dog food was $14.31, the average for dry cat food was $8.46, and the average for wet cat food was $1.22, recorded from August 2019 to August 2020.

The average price per kilogram of pet food has been gradually increasing over the last decade, up 34.8% from just over $2.50 per kg in 2010 to more than $3.50 per kg in 2019, according to Euromonitor.

Walmart is marketing these new private label products as “super-premium,” a category that has driven up the overall price per unit for pet food over the last decade.

Read more about new pet food and treat products.